August 2006
The Archives
-
08.24.06Michael Moore’s Other New Film: The Great 04 Slacker Uprising Sean | News, Tiff | (2)Documentary fans in the Toronto area have been very fortunate this year to have access to special public appearances by not one but two masters of the form. First came An Evening With Werner Herzog during the Hot Docs festival in May, and now in September, Michael Moore will be speaking at the Toronto International Film Festival. What will he be speaking about? Well, from the sounds of it he will be giving the world its first sneak peak at his upcoming movie Sicko, an investigation into the American health care system. But that's not all. Unbeknownst to us, Moore has ...
-
08.24.06Thumbsucker Director Mike Mills Plans Film About Anti-Depressants in Japan Sean | News | (0)Mike Mills, director of the brilliant 2005 indie flick Thumbsucker, is setting his sights on a feature-length documentary for his next project, according to a recent article in Lemon magazine. The project looks to continue exploring some of the issues he tackled in Thumbsucker, specifically the use of pharmaceutical drugs for psychological adjustment. Does Your Soul Have A Cold? (working title) is going to be an IFC TV production that investigates the startling increase in antidepressant use in Japan, and the cultural perceptions of mental illness both in the U.S. and Japan. From the Cactus Three website: "On one level, this ...
-
08.24.06Just For Kicks: The Sneaker Documentary Sean | News, Trailers | (0)While a documentary about sneakers and running shoes might sound like a pretty dull undertaking, there is actually a growing fanatical subculture out there that thrives on collecting this particular style of footwear. Just For Kicks is a movie that delves into the history of sneakers and their connection with hip hop culture, through interviews with collectors, designers, musicians and other sneaker junkies. Directed by Thibaut de Longeville and Lisa Leone, the film travels to New York, Paris, London, Portland and Los Angeles, meeting up with the many personalities who helped build this pop culture phenomenon. Although I'm not much of ...
-
08.23.06Frank Black Disappointed by Pixies Documentary Christopher | News | (2)In an interview with The Guardian, Frank Black discussed his disappointment about the Pixies reunion documentary, loudQUIETloud: a Film about the Pixies. Black stated, "I've got nothing against the film or the film-makers, but they manipulated the whole thing. They wanted a story, and that story became this tension within the band, how awful we got along, and Dave's downward spiral. Whereas Dave was actually the one who was holding us together. His breakdown only came at the end of the tour when he was upset about his dad's death. Then he became this kind of Jekyll and Hyde figure, dulling ...
-
08.22.06Trailer for Iraq War Documentary “The Ground Truth” Sean | News, Trailers | (0)I have to admit, I've been a little leery of Iraq War documentaries ever since I saw the film Gunner Palace. What was supposed to be a gripping and honest portrayal of things American troops experience every day, turned out to be both overdramatic and strangely light-hearted as it followed troops goofing off and laughing at inside jokes. To me it didn't have a point, and it just reeked of opportunism. Well now Focus Features have picked up another similar movie for distribution called The Ground Truth. Directed by Patricia Foulkrod, the movie looks to be a slightly more "grounded" (pun ...
-
08.20.06Marketable Controversy: ‘FUCK’ The Documentary Jay C | News | (1)A great documentary filmmaker seems to have the ability to pull a story out of even the most unusual or banal topics. When i first caught wind of Steve Anderson's documentary 'Fuck', I wasn't totally convinced that there was a story there. To me, this seemed like a film riding off of the success of the marketably controversial, and in my opinion completely unfunny, 'The Aristocrats'. A film that relied on a marketing strategy that almost dared people to sit through all of the bad language. Well we all know that people can't resist a dare, and that film was ...
